Will Serena delay her farewell?

The demise of the favourites at the US Open 2022 is already comparable to the last Grand Slam tournament at Wimbledon. Defending champion Emma Raducanu had to pull out just like Anett Kontaveit, Maria Sakkari, Simona Halep or Wimbledon winner Elena Rybakina. This, of course, increases the chances for the grand old lady of tennis, namely Serena Williams.

At the proud age of 40, the US American will finally end her sensational career after the tournament in Flushing Meadows. She already has 23 titles in Grand Slam tournaments under her belt. The world record is still held by the Australian Margaret Court, who has celebrated 24 triumphs. Perhaps Serena Williams will now manage to end her career in New York with a bang and draw level.

On Friday, she will meet an Australian, of all people. Ajla Tomljanovic could tie her compatriot’s record if she can prevail against her American opponent.

It was 24 years ago that Serena Williams took to the court for the first time at the US Open, winning her first title from Flushing Meadows in 1999 at the age of 17. It would be a very special story if the US American could now successfully come full circle in her home country. At least in this third round between Ajla Tomljanovic and Serena Williams, we’re leaning towards a tip on a win for the 40-year-old.

Ajla Tomljanovic – Statistics & current form

Current world ranking: 46
Position in the seedings: unseeded

Ajla Tomljanovic has not been known for pulling out trees at the US Open. This is the ninth time the Australian has competed at Flushing Meadows and her record there is barely even with 8-8 wins. For the second time in her career, the 29-year-old has now reached the third round at the last Grand Slam tournament of the year.

Strong form overseas

Hasn’t gone beyond that yet. The Australian has faced two ladies at Flushing Meadows so far who have only earned their place in the main draw via a Protected Ranking. In the first round, Ajla Tomljanovic faced Karolina Muchova from the Czech Republic and won in two sets 6-3 and 7-5.

In the second round, she had a little more trouble keeping Russian Evgeniya Rodina at bay. The Australian had to go over three sets and in the end only narrowly kept the upper hand with 1:6, 6:2 and 7:5. So now it’s back to a player with a protected ranking and perhaps between Ajla Tomljanovic and Serena Williams one should at least take a look at the odds for a win for the Australian.

The world number 46 has performed very well in recent weeks and has won ten of her last twelve matches. In Toronto, she only had to bow to the superior Iga Swiatek in the last 16 and in Cincinnati, where the Australian fought her way through the qualifying rounds, she even made it to the quarter-finals before Petra Kvitova was too much for her.

Serena Williams – Statistics & current form

Current world ranking: 605
Seeded position: unseeded

Serena Williams has barely featured on the WTA Tour this season. She played Wimbledon without any preparation. Then, when it became clear that the US Open would be her last appearance, the 40-year-old played in Toronto and Cincinnati, but was eliminated early in each case. Before the tournament in Flushing Meadows, the 2022 US American had a record of 1-3 wins.

Serena surprisingly strong

But apparently she now wants to do it again in New York. The organisers apparently didn’t expect Serena Williams to win any matches there, because videos were played on the court after her victory in the first round as a swan song. But perhaps the best tennis player of all time did not want to go out like this.

In the first round, she showed very good form against Danka Kovinic from Montenegro, winning 6:3 and 6:3 in two sets. In the second round, however, it was supposed to be over, actually. Estonian Annet Kontaveit, after all the world number two, was also unable to end Serena Williams’ career.

The American needed three sets, but in the end won 7:6, 2:6 and 6:2, which shows that the 40-year-old is obviously in relatively good physical shape. The draw is now pretty much open until the quarter-finals and we can well imagine that the journey will not be over on Friday. Rather, we’ll go out on a limb and give a prediction on another win for the Grand Dame in the duel between Ajla Tomljanovic and Serena Williams.

Ajla Tomljanovic – Serena Williams Direct comparison / H2H record

Ajla Tomljanovic has been on the WTA Tour for many years and has long been in a range in the rankings to compete in the major tournaments. So there have been plenty of opportunities to date to meet her US rival on court. However, that has not actually been the case until today and that is why Ajla Tomljanovic and Serena Williams will play each other for the first time on Friday.

Ajla Tomljanovic – Serena Williams Tip

Is this the last match in the great career of Serena Williams or does the journey continue a bit further? Looking at how the US player performed in the first two rounds, she obviously has a lot left to do at Flushing Meadows. She could benefit from the fact that some of the favourites are already out of the race, and she was personally responsible for Annet Kontaveit’s exit.

But maybe Ajla Tomljanovic will turn out to be a spoilsport on Friday. After all, it will have to be a player who ends Serena Williams’ career – unless she actually goes on to win her 24th Grand Slam title.

The Australian has shown good form in recent weeks, but on Friday she will not only be playing against her opponent, but also against an unleashed crowd. If the 40-year-old American manages to create some atmosphere with good balls early on, we’ll even play the betting odds on a 2-0 win for the American in this third-round match between Ajla Tomljanovic and Serena Williams.